Airtel Africa will list its mobile money business, Airtel Money, on the London Stock Exchange in the second half of 2026. This move marks the first standalone public listing for a major African mobile money operator.
The IPO establishes a public valuation benchmark for digital financial services across the continent. This development increases investor pressure on MTN Group to spin off and separately list its own fintech operations.
Shareholders argue that a separate listing could unlock billions of dollars in value currently embedded within the broader telecommunications group. MTN previously separated its fintech unit into a holding company and sold a minority stake to Mastercard, valuing the business at $5.2 billion.